


forget all the shooting stars and all the silver moons

by wafflesofdoom



Category: Emmerdale
Genre: Birthday Fluff, Established Relationship, M/M, Non-Explicit Sex, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-23
Updated: 2017-04-23
Packaged: 2018-10-23 00:23:28
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,250
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10708272
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wafflesofdoom/pseuds/wafflesofdoom
Summary: robert wakes up on his thirty-first birthday, and istotally,utterlyspoiled by his husband.





	forget all the shooting stars and all the silver moons

**Author's Note:**

> set in a universe where the incident etc., didn't happen, because the beauty of fic is that i can happily ignore storylines i don't like. happy (belated) birthday to my favourite fictional character!

Robert didn’t like birthdays. Really, he didn’t - he’d stopped liking birthdays once he’d turned twenty-five, feeing as though he’s started to go over the hill, not much seeing the point of celebrating.

He hadn’t even celebrated his thirtieth, and that was supposed to be a big one. Robert had wanted to celebrate in his own way, with a holiday to Barcelona, Aaron by his side, but that had fallen through.

Maybe he just wasn’t meant to celebrate his birthdays, Robert pondered, burying his face into his pillow. Maybe he should just leave well enough alone, and be grateful he survived another year.

He could just about go for a quiet dinner in the pub, and Victoria buying him a pint, but he didn’t want the fuss. If the Dingles had caught wind of when his birthday was, they’d have no doubt organised a surprise party in the pub.

He’d get it out of Aaron when he got up, make sure there was no Dingle organised chaos to come his way that day. Shifting in bed, Robert opened his eyes and stretched out, blinking at the bright light of their bedroom.

Aaron must already be up, light streaming in from their open bedroom door, invading their otherwise still dark room. Robert ran a hand through his already messy blonde hair, easing himself into a sitting position, just as Aaron reentered the room, tray in hand.

“You’re supposed to still be asleep!” Aaron grumbled good-naturedly, nudging their bedroom door shut with his hip, blocking out the rest of the already busy pub again.

It was the one thing Robert had never gotten quite used to about the Woolpack, the constant busy atmosphere of the pub. He’d always assumed that living in a pub, the day wouldn’t start until 12pm when the pub actually opened - but deliveries started from seven or eight, depending on the day, and it was always a hub of activity.

He’d almost miss the noise, when the Mill was finally finished and they were living in a place of their own. According to Ronnie, it would only be a few more weeks, a month, tops before the place was _actually_ liveable.

“You shouldn’t have left the door open then, should ya? The noise woke me up.” Robert teased, his heart swelling with love for his husband as he watched him set the tray down on their bed, piping hot tea and a freshly made bacon sarnie awaiting him.

Aaron’s cooking skills weren’t exactly top notch, but he liked breakfast food enough to be able to make decent bacon. “Happy birthday, Robert,” he said softly, leaning across to press a minty flavoured kiss to Robert’s lips.

Robert melted into the embrace, still revelling in the fact he got to kiss his husband whenever he wanted to, even now, two weeks after his release from prison. Two weeks wasn’t enough time to even begin to make up for all the time they lost when Aaron was inside, and there would never be enough soft, sleepy, morning kisses to make up for all the first mornings of their marriage they had missed.

“Thirty one, eh? How does it feel to be old?” Aaron teased, nudging the tray toward Robert, taking one of the cups of tea for himself. He looked gorgeous, Robert noted, his dark hair completely free of product and curly against his forehead, blue eyes wide and sincere as he teased Robert about his age.

“I’ve decided I don’t want to celebrate my birthdays anymore,” Robert said, scooping a mouthful of his breakfast into his mouth, his stomach rumbling as he chewed, making him realise just how hungry he actually was. “I’ve just gotten too old. Thirty was fine, but every age after that is just depressing. I’ll be forty and over the hill next, so I might as well quit while I’m ahead.”

Aaron snorted into his cup of tea, rolling his eyes at Robert’s dramatics. “So you don’t want your birthday present then?” he asked, a cheeky grin in place on his face.

Robert raised an eyebrow. “I’ll never turn down a birthday present,” he joked, searching the tray for an envelope or a present.

“I did get you a card,” Aaron said, leaning across the bed to reach into the top drawer of his bedside locker, producing a pristine blue envelope, and a present that seemed to be unwrapping itself. “I did try wrap it properly,” he grimaced, passing both to Robert. “Thought that counts and all that.”

Robert couldn’t help the smile on his face as he set the present down next to him on the bed, his attention on the card. Opening it up, his heart skipped a beat as he noticed the word husband on the front.

_To my husband._

The term still felt alien sometimes, still felt new to him, and seeing it written down in black and white (or rather, blue and yellow) made Robert happier than he realised a simple word had the capacity to.

Inside the card, in Aaron’s barely legible scrawl was a simple message.

_Happy Birthday Robert._

_I love you._

“Thank you,” Robert breathed, leaning over to press a kiss to Aaron’s lips, his husband taking like bacon sarnies and tea.

“It’s just a card, soft lad.” Aaron nudged at his hip, gesturing toward the present. “Go on, open it!”

Robert set the birthday card down on his bedside locker, his attention on the present now. It was a small box, a unfamiliar name embossed on the front. Curious, Robert tossed the wrapping paper aside, opening the box to reveal a watch.

“It’s not a Rolex or owt,” Aaron said, running a nervous hand through his hair. “It’s your granddads watch. I took it into the jewellers in Hotten to see if they could fix it, and they put a new strap on it.”

Robert ran a thumb over the familiar, now undamaged face. His mum had given him the watch when he was ten, making him promise that he’d keep it safe, because it had been her dads.

Over the years, it had gotten battered and broken, it having had a permanent place on Robert’s wrist until he was twenty six and Chrissie bought him a Rolex for his birthday.

He’d never even thought to get it fixed, even in the years since, but Aaron had - Aaron had taken the time to get it fixed, get it back to how it used to look, down to a newer version of the dark brown leather strap that had adorned his left wrist for so many years of his life.

Robert blinked back a surprising onslaught of tears, looking at Aaron. “I love it, thank you.”

Aaron’s face instantly brightened, delighted that he’d gotten a good reaction from Robert. “I’ve got one more present for ya,” he admitted, tugging at the sleeves of the hoodie he was wearing.

“Aaron, you didn't have to get me anything else -“ Robert began to protest, Aaron cutting him off with a shake of his head.

“It’s sort of a present for the both of us. I know we’ve not spent much time together, just the two of us, since I got out, so I’ve booked us a hotel for the weekend,” Aaron explained. “Just in Manchester, mind, but it’ll be good for us to get away. We can celebrate your birthday properly, yeah?”

Robert felt absolutely overwhelmed. “Aaron, you didn’t have to do all this.”

“I did,” Aaron replied, shaking his head again. “I barely even remembered your birthday last year, and it was your thirtieth. Think of this as me making up for that, yeah?”

“Getting to be with you is enough, you know that.”

“I can want to spoil ya a bit though, can’t I?” Aaron grinned, stealing the last bite of Robert’s bacon sandwich.

“I’ve never had a birthday like this.” Robert blurted.

Aaron raised an eyebrow. “You what?”

“You, doing all this for me, I’ve never had that before.” Robert said quietly.

“Even with Chrissie and her lot?”

Robert thought about the birthdays he’d spent with the Whites, the expensive, lavish affairs, the posh brunches and the department store wrapped presents, the surprise holidays. He’d loved it all, of course - getting whisked off his feet by Chrissie and her willingness to flash her bank card and buy him everything he’d ever wanted, but this felt different.

This felt like the birthdays he’d had growing up on the farm, Victoria always making him a card, his mum baking a sponge cake (with chocolate, of course) and the five of them sitting around the kitchen table, singing happy birthday entirely off-key as Robert blew out his candles.

This, this felt like spending his birthday with his _family._

“You wrapped it yourself,” Robert finally managed to say, running a hand over the wrapping paper, his gaze on the watch still safely in the box. “Chrissie would buy me something expensive, and you’d know it was wrapped in the shop. You know? But you’ve done it all yourself, even went to the trouble of trying to wrap it.”

Aaron looked completely confused. “You’re happy I wrapped your birthday present myself?” he questioned, raising an eyebrow.

“You put thought into it.” Robert said, taking the watch out of its box, sliding it onto his wrist. It was as though everything in his world clicked back into place, the only memento of his mother’s family he had back on his wrist, where it belonged.

Aaron leaned in and pressed a chaste kiss to Robert’s lips, gripping Robert’s knee tightly. “I love you, Mr Dingle.”

“I love you.” Robert echoed, his heart swelling with love for the kind, _thoughtful_ man sitting in front of him, the man who’d given him the world over the past year, given him a life worth being proud of.

Aaron beamed, running a hand through Robert’s hair before kissing him again. “We need to get a move on,” he mumbled against Robert’s lips, Robert practically groaning in protest.

He wanted a lazy morning in bed, thank you very much.

“Why?” he grumbled, unwilling to let go of his grip on Aaron’s hips just yet, wanting a few more kisses before he committed to any sort of movement that morning.

“Well, I told Vic we were heading off early this morning, and said we’ve have lunch with her and Diane tomorrow when we’re back to celebrate your birthday instead, so unless you want to get waylaid by your sister for a few hours, get your arse out of bed.”

Robert loved Victoria. He did, he really did - he loved her with every fibre of his being, but she took birthdays very seriously. If she had any say in the matter, Robert would be sitting having a very long lunch with her and Diane until it was practically teatime, and well -

He’d rather spend his birthday with his gorgeous husband, if he was honest, Aaron already standing and getting dressed, tugging on that dark green jumper that made every drop of blood in Robert’s body rush southwards.

“I’ve got the bags in the car already,” Aaron said nonchalantly, as if he were commenting on the weather.

“You _what?_ ”

Aaron didn’t pack. Robert had washed and ironed all of their clothes for the Manchester trip, so he was slightly curious and mostly terrified to see what awaited him in the boot of Aaron’s car.

“Don’t worry, I took your suit to the dry cleaners,” Aaron snorted at the look on Robert’s face, shoving his belt through the loops on his black jeans, looking positively gorgeous as he laughed at Robert’s confusion.

“Suits?”

“You get everything you want on your birthday,” Aaron smirked, draining the last of his cup of tea before he turned his focus to Robert’s still stunned expression, kissing the confusion from Robert’s lips. “Including me in a suit.”

It took everything Robert had not to _leap_ out of bed, scrambling for their chest of drawers and some clean underwear.

“Anyone would think you were eager,” Aaron teased, Robert’s heart sinking as he reached out for the bottle of hair gel on their chest of drawers. He smirked again, clearly able to read Robert like a book, bypassing the gel to grab his wallet. “I told you, you get everything you want on your birthday.”

Robert paused, one leg in his trousers. “Yeah?”

“I know you hate the gel.” Aaron shrugged, moving past Robert to get to the now discarded tray, pausing to smack Robert’s arse as he passed.

Robert jumped slightly. “What was that for?”

“Birthday bumps!” Aaron shrugged, picking up the tray. “Only thirty more to go, old man.”

“Don’t you dare try and smack me thirty times.”

“You love getting spanked, who are you trying to kid?” Aaron said, a cheeky grin in place on his face. “Come on, hurry up. It’ll be your next bloody birthday by time you’re ready!”

Robert shook his head in amusement as Aaron headed out their bedroom door, leaving him to get dressed.

He hadn’t been exaggerating, when he’d said he’d never had a birthday like this before. It was the first time in a really long time where it felt like his birthday was entirely about him.

Aaron was making it about _him_ , about all the things Robert loved - suits, and gel free hair, and all the time in the world to gaze adoringly at his husband without one of the infinite number of Dingles that seemed to swarm around the Woolpack interrupting.

It was only eleven in the morning, but this was already his best birthday yet.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The drive to Manchester had been nice, Robert stretched out in the passenger seat of Aaron’s car, enjoying being the passenger for once. He liked being the one to drive them places, but Aaron seemed determined that Robert wasn't going to so much as lift a finger that weekend.

He’d scrolled through his Facebook account, giving the courtesy like to the happy birthday posts he’d gotten from ex-colleagues and old friends, grinning at the happy birthday he’d gotten from Annie, his grandmother still sunning herself in Spain, and somehow managing to navigate social media in her old age.

Robert’d have to visit her someday soon, before the whirlwind that was Annie Sugden decided she’d had enough of her absent grandchildren and arrived home to Emmerdale.

He’d even gotten a message from Liv, a terrible picture of him passed out on the couch in the backroom of the Woolpack attached, Liv clearly having had taken it as blackmail material months previous.

Robert missed her, missed her a lot, if he was honest. His and Aaron’s lives were so much quieter without her around, and he was looking forward to when she and Chas were home, when his little family was back together, complete again.

“Here we are,” Aaron said, pulling into the carpark of the hotel.

Robert couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow as he looked at the hotel, recognising it as the Radisson Blu Edwardian. “Aaron, this place costs a fortune!” he said, completely stunned at Aaron’s lavish choice of hotel.

“I told you, I’m making up for last year.” Aaron shrugged, switching off the ignition, giving Robert a pointed look. “I can drive us home if you’re going to make a fuss about the price.”

“I wont, I promise. I just - thank you, Aaron.” Robert said, leaning across the centre console to kiss Aaron, feeling overwhelmingly grateful for how much effort Aaron was giving to his birthday.

He didn’t deserve it.

Aaron smiled at him, that soft, loving smile that he seemed to reserve for Robert alone, something so special about it. “Come on then,” he said, opening his car door. “I’m starving.”

Robert nodded in agreement, taking the holdall Aaron had packed from the boot, the leather strap soft and familiar in his hand, his husband taking the suit bag from the back of the car. Aaron reached for Robert’s hand as they rounded the car, tangling their fingers together as they walked the few short steps between the car park, and into the hotel.

The hotel was just as beautiful inside, as the outside would imply, a grand marble staircase in the centre of the reception, the hotel giving off an air of grandeur, impressive bouquets of flowers adoring dark wooden tables. It was very much to Robert’s taste, and very much _not_ Aaron’s.

Robert was completely gobsmacked as Aaron tugged him toward the reception desk, flashing a smile at the receptionist.

“I’ve got a booking for tonight under Sugden?”

Robert’s eyes widened as he listened to Aaron.

_Sugden?_

“Your room is ready Mr Sugden, if you just sign here,” the receptionist said, setting a piece of paper down in front of Aaron.

Reluctantly, Robert let go of Aaron’s hand so he could sort their room out, watching as Aaron scrawled his signature across the bottle of the page.

“Thank you Mr Sugden. Your dinner booking is for 7pm, correct?”

Aaron nodded. “Yeah.”

“Enjoy your stay with us,” the receptionist beamed, handing Aaron their key cards. “You’re on the twelfth floor.”

“Thanks,” Aaron nodded, nudging Robert toward the lifts.

Robert couldn’t help himself. As soon as they doors closed behind them, and Aaron had hit the button for the twelfth floor, he pounced, dropping the holdall to the floor as he pinned Aaron to the wall, kissing him for all he was worth.

“Mr Sugden?” he questioned, pressing wet, open mouthed kisses along Aaron’s jawline, giving him the room he needed to speak.

Aaron’s breath was warm against his cheek, a grin fixed in place on his face as he replied, his free hand tracing patterns on Robert’s clothed hip. “It is your birthday, after all.”

Robert didn't know how to put into words how much it meant to hear something as simple as their hotel booking being under Sugden. He couldn’t possibly find the words to tell Aaron what it meant to have his husband embracing the family name Robert himself bore so proudly, how much it meant to have Aaron feel comfortable to use it as his own, after everything they’d done to each other over the years, after everything Robert had done to him.

No, he’d never have the words for all that, so Robert settled for kissing him again, holding tightly to Aaron’s waist, as though his husband was the only thing anchoring him to the world.

Aaron was breathless and grinning widely when they eventually broke apart, a red flush to his cheeks. “Just wait until you see the room,” he promised, the doors opening out onto the twelfth floor.

Robert was torn between refusing to let Aaron out of his grasp, and wanting to see their room, eventually going with the latter, picking up the holdall again and following Aaron down the corridor.

It took a couple of tries for Aaron to get the keycard to work, and when the panel on the door finally lit up green and the door swung open, he ushered Robert in with a bright grin on his face, his excitement clear.

Robert took a second to appreciate the planning that Aaron had put into all of this before he stepped inside the room, his jaw practically hitting the floor as he took in their surroundings.

The room was _spectacular_ , all plush cushions and expensive furniture, a view of Manchester city centre from their floor to ceiling windows, the busy, bustling city looking more than inviting from twelve floors above. There was an ice bucket sitting by the small dining table, a ridiculous amount of rose petals scattered around the room, across the bed.

“I told them it was your birthday, said they’d deck it out.” Aaron grinned, hanging the suit bag on the back of the door, pleased that his plan had worked. Robert watched as his husband brushed a hand across the thick duvet cover, rose petals scattering across the covers at the movement.

“Aaron, this is _amazing_ ,” Robert couldn’t help the wonder in his voice as he drank in their surroundings, the beautiful hotel room that was theirs for the next twenty-four hours.

“You’re also booked in for a full body massage in the morning,” Aaron said, making his way across the room to the champagne, not saying anything for a few seconds as he cracked it open, his brow furrowed in concentration as his hands worked to free the cork. “Dunno what package it is, they just recommended it, apparently its one of their best.”

“Aaron -“

“If you say I didn’t have to do all this again, I’ll kill you,” Aaron said, pouring them both a glass of champagne, passing one of the fizz filled glasses to Robert. “I _know_ I didn’t have to do any of this. I know you would have been happy with a day in bed and dinner out in Hotten.”

Robert nodded. He’d have been happy with anything, as long as he got to spend his day with Aaron.

“I just wanted to spoil you for once. You’re always the one who organises this sort of thing,” Aaron shrugged. “I wanted you to have a birthday to remember.”

Robert would remember this one. He would _always_ remember this birthday.

“Thank you.”

“Just, enjoy it, yeah?” Aaron said, rocking forward on his heels slightly. “Don’t think about everything else thats going on. This weekend is about you, so - just enjoy it.”

“I will.” Robert said sincerely, knowing he’d savour every second he got to spend alone with Aaron, in this hotel.

Aaron smiled, clinking his glass against Robert’s. “Happy birthday then, old man.”

Robert rolled his eyes, taking a swig of his champagne. “Enough of the old man, cheeky, I’m only thirty one.”

“Considering how slow you are to put that bed to the test, I’d say you were over the hill,” Aaron teased, setting his champagne glass back down on the table, only having had drank a few mouthfuls.

Robert raised an eyebrow, setting his own glass down. “I thought you were supposed to be spoiling me, seeing as it’s my birthday n’all?” he said, wondering if Aaron would be the first to make a move.

They did this sometimes, a sort of leftover hangup from their affair days, from times they’d meet in the barn, the tension between them unbearable, both of them determined to tease each other by drawing out the first move.

They’d stand like this for what felt like an age, just staring and smirking, until eventually one of them would move, and it was as though a damn had burst, both of them desperate for each other.

Robert watched as Aaron closed what little space there was left between them, running his fingers along the waistband of Robert’s trousers, dipping his fingers into Robert’s boxers, his touch electric as his fingers came into contact with Robert’s hipbone.

Robert’s breath hitched in his throat as Aaron’s lips grazed along his jawline, his husband fixing him with a sultry gaze.

“I do owe you your birthday bumps,” he grinned, Robert’s eyes fluttering closed as Aaron worked his belt open with one hand, giving himself a bit more room to shove his hand unceremoniously instead Robert’s boxers, his palm warm against Robert’s rapidly hardening dick.

Robert couldn’t form a coherent sentence, not with Aaron’s hand down his trousers, familiar fingers stroking his dick to full hardness, his trousers too tight now. “I - Aaron, _please_.”

“Please what?”

Robert opened his eyes, nose to nose with Aaron and his knowing smirk. “‘Want you,” he managed to mumble out, his chest heaving as Aaron continued to stroke his dick, long, slow, deliberate strokes that promised so much more.

“Well,” Aaron took his hand out of Robert’s trousers, dropping to his knees on the thick carpet of their hotel room, Robert feeling as though he was about to pass out as he took in the image of his husband on his knees, dark hair gel free and waiting for Robert to tangle his hands in, Aaron tugging Robert’s trousers and boxers past his knees in one swift movement, goosepimples rising on Robert’s pale thighs as the cold air of the room hit his skin. “It is your birthday, I suppose.”

Robert could have died when Aaron finally gave him what he wanted, taking Robert’s dick into his mouth in one swift, practised movement.

_Happy birthday indeed._

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Robert was so full, he could burst. Their meal had been spectacular, the food worth every penny of the insane price tag it had all come with. Aaron had even ordered them a bottle of wine without needing to ask, a fruity red that complimented the steaks they'd both ordered beautifully.

It had been the most perfect evening of his life. Aaron had given him a blowjob that left his legs shaking and his head like cottonwool, and then they’d made spectacular use of the bed (only after they'd taken the gorgeously carpeted floor of their suite for a test drive, Aaron flat on his back as Robert eagerly returned the favour, straddling Aaron’s calves as he sucked him off for all he was worth.)

Then they’d had dinner, a candlelit affair that had Robert’s heart aching with love for the man sitting across from him. He knew Aaron wasn’t much of a fan of all this sort of thing, happy to sit at home with a takeaway and a few bottles of beer, but here he was, dressed in his wedding suit and working his way through the bottle of wine with Robert, not looking the least bit out of place in the midst of the hotel’s expensive restaurant.

It was perfect.

 _Aaron_ was perfect.

“I don’t know why you’ve ordered dessert,” Robert admitted, shifting in his seat slightly, trying to get more comfortable. Two courses in, and his suit trousers were on the verge of becoming uncomfortably tight. “I’m absolutely stuffed.”

Aaron shrugged, draining the last of his glass of wine. For someone who claimed not to like the stuff, he’d happily worked his way through his half of the bottle. “It’s your birthday, you’ve got to have dessert,” he said, as though it was a crime not to have something sweet on your birthday.

Normally, Robert would probably agree. He had a worse sweet tooth than Aaron did, but their dinner had been absolutely decadent, he couldn’t face a pudding.

Though, he had high hopes for a chocolate cake to be waiting for him when they got home the next day, Vic’s infamous triple chocolate birthday cake a tradition in the Sugden clan these days.

Before Robert could say anything else, their waitress set a plate down in front of him, a bright smile on her face. “Enjoy,” she said, setting two spoons down on their table before she left them to their dessert.

Robert had to laugh, as he looked at the chocolate pudding in front of him, ‘happy birthday’ written in neat chocolate lettering on the plate. “You know I’m not ten, yeah?” he questioned, thinking of the family they’d gone for when he’d turned thirteen, to the new Italian restaurant in Hotten.

The whole restaurant had sung him happy birthday, and Robert had revelled in the attention, unlike Andy, who’d sat and hoped for the ground to swallow him up when the same thing happened the next year on his birthday.

Robert did always like being the centre of attention, even back then.

Aaron simply grinned, holding up his phone. “Smile then,” he commanded, Robert obediently turning the plate so you could clearly read that it said happy birthday, smiling for the picture.

Aaron was doing that a lot more lately, taking photos. Robert wondered if it was natural reaction to his stint in prison, his husband having spent six weeks without so much as a blurry selfie of Robert to look at.

Either way, he didn’t mind. Robert wanted to capture every moment they spent together himself, document every happy day the two of them got so that he could remember those quiet, happy moments forever.

Unable to help himself, Robert stuck his spoon into the dessert, the small mouthful he’d taken practically melting in his mouth. “That’s really good,” he mumbled through a mouthful of the pudding.

Aaron set his phone down, picking up his own spoon. “The food here is really good,” he agreed, digging into the dessert.

How domestic of them, Robert thought with a smile, sharing a dessert.

“Not too posh for you then?” Robert teased, setting his spoon down with a clang, letting Aaron polish off the rest of the pudding. His husband was an absolutely bottomless pit when it came to food sometimes, he really was.

Aaron shook his head, swallowing the last of the chocolate pudding, a smudge of chocolate sauce on his cheek. “S’good.”

Robert couldn’t help but reach across, wiping the chocolate away with the pad of his thumb. “Messy git,” he said affectionately, enjoying the blush that rose in Aaron’s cheeks at his action.

“Come on,” Aaron jerked his head toward the restaurant exit. “Let’s go.”

“Go where?”

Aaron rolled his eyes. “Robert, we’ve got a very expensive hotel room I plan to make very good use of tonight,” he said, laughing as Robert shoved back his chair, instantly ready to go. “Meet me in the reception, yeah? I’m just going to pay the bill.”

Knowing it would just start an argument if Robert protested, he nodded, muttering his thanks to the waitress as he walked back out into the hotel’s reception, hands buried in his suit pockets.

He felt his phone vibrate as he stood, admiring the marble staircase, and curious, Robert reached for his phone.

_Aaron Dingle has tagged you in a picture._

Robert smiled to himself as he unlocked his phone, waiting for the Facebook app to load. Aaron had already uploaded the picture of him with his dessert to Facebook, captionless as always, a few random celebratory emojis and a location the only context to the photo.

It already had a few likes, a string of love hearts from Victoria taking up the comments section.

“You alright?”

Robert looked up from his phone, watching as Aaron yanked his tie free of its knot, an easy smile on his face. “Just admiring your new Facebook post,” he said gesturing to his phone screen.

Aaron hooked a finger in one of Robert’s belt loops, giving a noncommittal shrug. “Bad husband if I don’t put something on Facebook today, innit?” he said, guiding Robert to the lift.

Robert glanced at his phone screen, struck by how happy he looks in the photo. It wasn’t his usual smarmy business smile, the fake smile he plastered on his face when he’d meet a new client, or close a new deal.

No, this was a real smile, a happy one. Robert looked more at ease in that photo than he’d ever felt in his entire life, and sometimes, it still surprised him, how easy it was to sit in a restaurant with the man he loved, and not feel _different_.

He’d always figured it would feel different, that people would stare because it was two men on a date, not a man and a woman, but they hadn’t (or maybe they had, and Robert just hadn’t noticed, too caught up in Aaron to even really care.)

“I look happy,” he murmured as they stepped out of the lift on the twelfth floor again, Aaron’s finger still tightly looped in his belt. Aaron did that a lot, these days, held tightly to Robert for no other reason than to feel close to him.

Robert loved it.

“You deserve to be happy,” Aaron said, a serious look on his face as he unlocked their door, the two of them returning to the oasis that was their suite.

Robert didn’t say anything, locking his phone screen, taking his usual second to admire his lockscreen. It was a selfie they’d taken on their wedding day, a slightly blurry picture that seemed to radiate happiness, even though it was just pixels on a phone screen.

Aaron had long since discarded his tie at that point, the top few buttons of his shirt open and his gaze entirely on Robert, wide blue eyes full of love and affection. Robert was looking at the camera, oblivious to the look Aaron was giving him.

He’d spent a long time completely oblivious to the love Aaron felt for him, but he knew now, understood the depths of the love the other man felt for him, saw it every single day, even when he wasn’t looking for it.

Saw it in the way Aaron would nudge his tea toward a tired Robert if he was last up in the morning, happy to let him drink it and make another for himself. Saw it in the way Aaron would press a finger to the inside of Robert’s wrist when he thought Robert was sleeping, his breathing slow and even against Robert’s back as Aaron reassured himself that this was real, they were together and Robert was _his_.

He felt it in every loving gaze, every brush of Aaron’s fingers, every affectionate “soft lad” that would pass his husbands lips.

Robert didn’t deserve it, didn’t deserve any of it, didn’t deserve Aaron’s love.

“You do, Robert, you deserve to be happy,” Aaron said, standing with his chest to Robert’s back, his arms winding tightly around Robert’s middle. “Everything you do for me, you deserve to be happy.”

Robert wasn’t sure why he felt on the verge of tears as he listened to Aaron’s reassuring words, but he didn’t trust himself to speak without losing it entirely, and well - tears would ruin an otherwise perfect night.

“You deserve to be happy,” Aaron said again, definitively, his words strong and unwavering, just like his grip on Robert’s waist was. “Let me show you.”

Robert simply nodded, letting himself be pliant and willing under Aaron’s hands, his husband tugging his shirt free of his trousers, easing Robert’s suit jacket from his shoulders before he guided him toward the king sized bed, pushing him into a sitting position.

“I love you,” Aaron said, nimble fingers easing open the buttons of Robert’s shirt, tossing it to the growing pile of clothes on the floor, taking a second to shed his own jacket and shirt, before he toed off his shoes, pushing Robert backward onto the bed.

Aaron always had this way of making every single time they were together feel like a first time, his touch always electric against Robert’s bare skin. Robert was helpless to do anything but watch as Aaron trailed his hands down Robert’s chest, thumbs pressing into his hipbones as he straddled Robert’s thighs.

“I love you,” Aaron repeated, his voice soft as he pressed kisses to Robert’s collarbone, and chest, tonguing along Robert’s nipples, Robert groaning as Aaron nipped and bit at his skin, taking him apart with his mouth.

Robert was on air. Somehow, Aaron was making every touch feel positively electric, setting every inch of Robert’s skin on fire as he ground down against Robert’s hips, a self satisfied grin on Aaron’s face as he listened to Robert moan and whine helplessly.

“I love you,” Aaron said for the third time, his hand working into Robert’s trousers, underneath his boxers, his palm hot and heavy against Robert’s dick. “I love you, Robert, let me show you how much.”

Robert thrust his hips upward, a sheen of sweat on his chest as he tried to get Aaron to move his hand more, move it faster, give him the release he was always so desperate for when Aaron got his hands on him.

“Robert,” Aaron pushed at his stomach, stilling him so he could tug Robert’s trousers down his legs, leaving his body bare to Aaron’s gaze. “Let me show you.”

Robert nodded, let Aaron unwind his every knot and worry, let Aaron take him apart with his mouth, his hands, his fingers, let himself be completely overwhelmed as Aaron pushed Robert’s knee aside, burying himself in Robert’s tight, velvety heat.

Aaron was everywhere, the scent of his cologne, the familiar scent of his own shower gel on Aaron’s skin, the zingy lemon scent he was so used to smelling on his own body smelling different, better, smelling comforting.

“I love you,” Robert choked out, arching his back as Aaron hit that sweet spot inside him, turning every bone in his body to liquid. “I love you so much, Aaron.”

Aaron pressed his lips to the underside of Robert’s jaw, his breathing unsteady. “Happy birthday, Robert.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 _Happy_.

That’s what he was as he curled in on his side, Aaron’s arms wrapped tightly around him, his chin digging into Robert’s shoulder.

 **Happy**.

Robert was sex happy and sated, feeling like loved up mush in his husbands hands as they cuddled, the bright lights of the city twinkling through their hotel window, the world rushing on around them, the two of them in their own little bubble of just _them_ , of _AaronandRobert_ and the endless happy days and months and years they had ahead of them.

“Happy birthday Robert,” Aaron murmured, his palm warm against the sweat cooling skin of Robert’s stomach, those familiar hands keeping Robert grounded, keeping him where he was supposed to be, right here with Aaron, wherever Aaron was, tonight and every night for the rest of his life. 

Robert smiled, burrowing his head further into the pillow.

_Yes it was._

 

fin

**Author's Note:**

> this got so out of control i can't even tell you. i just have a lot of feelings about robert getting spoiled on his birthday, apparently. hope you enjoyed this fluff!
> 
> title from for him by troye sivan. 
> 
> i'm capseycartwright over on tumblr if you fancy a chat!


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